Bain Capital to Invest $31B in Japan Over Five Years and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Bain Capital leads Mingtiandi’s headline roundup today as the US fund manager aims to invest $31 billion in Japan over the next five years. Also making the news, South Korea’s Lotte REIT mortgages a Gangnam department store as it raises funds to repay a $173.5 million debt and a mainland tycoon’s seized Hong Kong office tower goes up for bid.

Bain Capital to Invest $31B in Japan Over Five Years

US fund manager Bain Capital will invest a total of JPY 5 trillion ($31.1 billion) in Japan over the next five years, a senior official said.

Japan has many “highly segmented” industries, said Masashi Suekane, partner at Bain Capital, forecasting that realignment and consolidation activities will intensify in the automobile parts and basic materials industries. Read more>>

Lotte REIT Pledges Gangnam Department Store Against $174M Debt

South Korea’s Lotte REIT has pledged Lotte Department Store’s Gangnam branch as collateral to repay KRW 240 billion ($173.5 million) in debt due this month.

According to investment banking sources, next month the trust plans to issue collateral bonds, which differ from regular corporate bonds because they are issued against high-quality real estate assets. Lotte REIT has offered the Gangnam store, located in a prime location, as collateral for the fundraising. Read more>>

Hong Kong Tower Seized From Cheung Kei Boss Goes Up for Bid

Hong Kong commercial property One HarbourGate East Tower in Hung Hom, among a series of assets seized last year from Chinese tycoon Chen Hongtian, has been put on sale for a second time amid weak office market sentiment.

The receivers have put the tower back on the market for a new round of bidding, according to a statement released Thursday by Savills, which has been appointed as the sole agent for the sale. Read more>>

Hong Kong Rents Rise as Incoming Students, Professionals Vie for Space

Jason Li, a 22-year-old from Shandong province who will be pursuing a master’s degree at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology starting in September, recently put down a deposit on a three-bedroom flat in Fortress Hill immediately after viewing the unit.

Li’s budget was HK$20,000 ($2,560) per month for himself and two flatmates. But the rent for the unit he leapt to get, in Fortress Metro Tower, is HK$26,000 per month. Read more>>

New NPS-Backed Prime Office Building in Seoul Sees Poor Demand

South Korea’s National Pension Service, the world’s third-largest pension fund, is seeing little demand for a Seoul-based new prime office in which the pension scheme has injected KRW 2.3 trillion ($1.7 billion), the fund’s largest investment in a single real estate deal in the country.

Investment banking sources said Thursday that the property, part of state-of-the-art complex Magok One Grove in western Seoul, is struggling with finding a future tenant. The office will finish construction by next month, with occupancy beginning in February 2025. Read more>>

DBS Fined by Hong Kong for Violating Anti-Money-Laundering Rules

DBS Group’s Hong Kong unit was fined HK$10 million ($1.28 million) by the city’s regulator for lapses in adhering to anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist financing regulations.

The disciplinary action follows an investigation by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority of DBS Hong Kong’s systems and controls for compliance, the regulator said. The lapses took place between April 2012 and April 2019. Read more>>

Ho Bee Land Prices $118M in Green Notes Due in 2029 at 4.35%

Ho Bee Land priced S$160 million ($118.6 million) in fixed-rate green notes due in 2029 at 4.35 percent, the Singapore developer said Friday.

The notes fall under the real estate group’s S$800 million multi-currency medium-term note programme. Ho Bee expects to issue the notes on 11 July 2024; they mature on 11 July 2029. Read more>>

India’s Logistics Sector Drew $2.5B in Q2, Led by Foreign Investors

As India aspires to energise its land bank to scale up efforts for boosting the manufacturing and services economy, the logistics sector is attracting foreign investors.

According to a recent report by Colliers India, the second quarter of 2024 saw a surge in momentum after a steady start to the year. Read more>>